Best of the NCAA tournament, Day 1: Agony, elation and four overtime games

posted by Jeff Eisenberg
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2 years ago

1. On a day that featured three victories by double-digit seeds, the biggest story may have been the upset that didn't happen. When NC State built a 14-point lead with five minutes to play against fifth-seeded Saint Louis, the 12th-seeded Wolfpack appeared certain to go from the last at-large team in the field to the round of 32. Instead they melted down in mesmerizing fashion, missing 11 free throws in the final 3:09 to enable the Billikens to rally for an improbable 83-80 overtime victory.

3. The title contender whose day was most anxiety-ridden was defending national champ Louisville, which trailed by three with less than four minutes remaining against 13th-seeded Manhattan before three of last March's stalwarts saved the day. Russ Smith tied the game with a 3-pointer, Montrezl Harrell had two huge blocks and Luke Hancock buried two more threes as the Cardinals escaped with a 71-64 victory. Rick Pitino had complained about the matchup before the game because it pitted him against former assistant coach Steve Masiello.

4. The surest sign Thursday had the potential to be chaotic was that the first game to tip off ended with an upset set up by a frenzied finish. Dayton's Vee Sanford drove past Ohio State's Aaron Craftand banked in a go-ahead runner with 3.8 seconds to go, securing a 60-59 victory that sent the Flyers into the round of 32 for the first time in five years. It was a cruel finish to a sterling career for Craft, who has built a reputation as one of college basketball's better on-ball defenders but got beat at the worst possible time.

5. The last 118 times San Diego State had led with five minutes to play entering Thursday night, the Aztecs had won the game. That streak reached 119 with a 73-69 victory over New Mexico State, but this was a win that didn't have to be so close. San Diego State led by eight with 1:24 to play before missed free throws, blown box-outs and one disastrous turnover enabled the Aggies to tie the game with a deep 3-pointer with six seconds left in regulation. Xavier Thames scored five points in overtime to help the Aztecs survive.